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"U.S. forces &quot;just missed&quot; capturing terror leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in a gunfight over the weekend in the northern city of Mosul, U.S. military sources told. The military had intelligence that indicated al-Zarqawi was meeting with high-level Iraq in al-Qaida lieutenants, a Pentagon source confirmed.  As soldiers closed in on the site, there was an exchange of small arms fire, then it appears the three al-Qaida suspects blew themselves up to avoid capture. The military is conducting DNA tests on flesh and blood recovered from the scene, but a Pentagon official said indications are that al-Zarqawi is not among those killed. &quot;The information was solid.  We just missed him,&quot; said one Pentagon source. Separately, White House spokesman Trent Duffy said Sunday that reports of al-Zarqawi's death were &quot;highly unlikely and not credible.&quot; &quot;We have no indication that al-Zarqawi was killed in this fight and we continue operations to search for him,&quot; added Lt. Col. Barry Johnson, a U.S. military spokesman.The elusive al-Zarqawi has narrowly escaped capture in the past, according to NBC.V.Y."
<https://english.pravda.ru/news/hotspots/71098-n/>